Naruto Chronicles: Hiraishin's Truth
by King Cairo
Summary: People always assumed that the Yondaime's Hiraishin was a jikukan ninjutst. However, what only a few people know is that it's a jikukan kekkei genkai. Now, the time has come for Naruto to show the world the true extent of his hidden powers. Slight Mortal Kombat crossover. I don't own Naruto or Mortal Kombat. Read and review. REVIEW! Rated M for safety.


Naruto Chronicles: Hiraishin's Truth

Chapter 1

Speaking: normal

Thoughts, flashbacks, com-link, and notes: _italicized_

Jutsus, summons, demons: **bold**

Summons's and demon's thoughts, and mind link…: _**bold italicized**_

(): author speaking

…: Time change

~: Scene change

Summary: The Yondaime Hokage's infamous Hiraishin no jutsu was more than just a Jikukan Ninjutsu. It was a Jikukan kekkei genkai. During the finals of the Chūnin Exams, Kakashi gives Naruto permission to use that very bloodline. With the help of his sensei and a few friends, watch as our favorite blonde takes the world by storm with his true self.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Naruto is the property of one Hyūga Hinata…um…I mean Masashi Kishimoto. Yeah, that's what I said. Masashi Kishimoto…

* * *

Naruto groaned as Kakashi said, "I'm sorry, Naruto, but I have to train Sasuke for the finals. You know as well as I do that his opponent is more likely to kill him than yours."

He then pulled Naruto to a corner where no one could hear him. "Listen," he said. "Now that the exams are moving into the finals, the Hokage will be too busy with delegations and diplomacy to effectively keep Danzo out of your hair. If the civvies catch wind of me training you, you're gonna catch hell in a hand basket."

Naruto could only nod as he removed his orange jacket. "Still, I can't just sit on my ass and not do anything. I still need a sensei for the finals. My Ninjutsu is pretty good and my Taijutsu is almost on par with Sasuke-teme, but I still need some kind of an edge."

Kakashi briefly looked around before asking, "Do you remember the promise you made me before you entered the academy?"

As soon as Naruto nodded, Kakashi gave him an eye smile. "I'm officially releasing you from that promise. You've proven that you can handle yourself without abusing that power."

Naruto's eyes instantly lit up in excitement. He was quick to ask, "Does that mean you're gonna…"

Kakashi nodded and pulled out a scroll. "Yes Naruto, I'm gonna send them the message as soon as we're done talking. Knowing them, they'll be here in a heartbeat."

Naruto was about to jump for joy when he saw a woman with long black hair in a strange blue outfit from the corner of his eye. "Kakashi-sensei, I'll talk to you later. I think that I might've found my own answer to my problem."

Kakashi could only watch as his favorite student, not that he'd admit to playing favorites, ran off in higher spirits. He then unrolled the scroll and wrote a small message while thinking, "_It's time for us to stop hiding so many secrets. Naruto needs you both here as much as you need to be here with him._"

* * *

Elsewhere…

Ino Yamanaka was currently tending to her family's flower shop while her parents were away. She had just finished taking inventory when a strange figure in a hooded cloak wandered in. The character slowly approached the counter and said in an oddly familiar voice, "I would like to purchase a bouquet of Fire Lilies if you have any."

Ino quickly ran to the back of the store before returning with a bouquet of bright red flowers that seemed to give off an orange glow. "These are the last we have in stock at the moment. You got really lucky to get here before they were bought by someone else."

The figure nodded as he said, "I'm glad that you had these in stock. A very good friend of mine has fallen ill and these are the last thing I need to cure her. I thank you for your time, Yamanaka-san."

As the figure exited the store, Ino was finally able to match a face to the voice. With her curiosity taking over her thoughts, Ino put the "closed" sign on the door and pursued the cloaked figure.

She hadn't been surprised in the least when she noticed the figure enter the Ichiraku Ramen stand. However, she had to reevaluate her thoughts when she saw him remove his hood. While the hair color was exactly the same, its length was not what she expected.

Ino quickly sat down next to the figure and said, "Naruto, I don't know how you got your hair that long but I know those whiskers when I see them."

The male in question turned to Ino and gave a polite smile. "Yamanaka-san, you are not the first person to confuse me with Naruto. I am one of his twin brothers."

Ino gave him a puzzled look. "Let's say that I believe you. Who exactly are you and how many brothers does Naruto have?"

The blonde smirked as Teuchi placed another bowl of ramen down in front of him. "You will find out soon enough, Yamanaka-san. As for whom I am, my name is…"

* * *

One month later…

As everyone waited for the first match of the finals to start, Neji scoffed at Naruto's absence. "It looks as though the fool has accepted his fate and shied away from the battle. Proctor-san, you might as well declare me the winner."

Genma was about to make a motion when three cloaked figures appeared in the arena via a yellow flash. The first figure looked to the crowd and sneered. "Naruto-nii, I can't believe we're still wasting our time in this cesspool of a village. You know as well as I do that these bastards don't deserve to have a shinobi like you."

The middle figure cuffed the one who spoke over the head. "Menma nii-san, while I do agree that staying here is a waste of time, Naruto-nii still has people who are close to his heart here."

Naruto removed the hood from his head and smiled. "Cairo-nii is right. If I abandon the ones I care about, I would be no worse than someone like Danzo-teme or Orochimaru-teme."

The other two removed their hoods to reveal a boy who had Naruto's face but with black hair and the long haired blonde that spoke to Ino. The one with black hair turned to Genma and said, "Cairo-nii and I are only here to drop off Naruto-nii. We'll leave the field so that you can get started."

Before Genma could respond, Cairo and Menma vanished from the field and left their brother to face Neji. Naruto removed his cloak to reveal that he had discarded his orange jumpsuit in favor of a set of dark red battle robes.

Genma gave the blonde a once over and said, "Naruto-san, did you really hijack the design for your outfit from the Dark Brotherhood in Skyrim?"

Naruto smirked as he reached into his sleeve. "Yeah, I had a lot of spare time on my hands one week and I thought the Dark Brotherhood robes were pretty kick ass. Although, you can clearly see that I changed their insignia to the Uzumaki swirl."

Genma smirked as he turned to the audience. "Since Naruto Uzumaki has arrived in time for his match, the first battle will begin…now!"

* * *

Stands…

High up in the stands, the members of the Rookie 9 were currently ranting over the first match. Kiba turned to Sakura and said, "Why didn't you ever mention that Naruto had brothers?"

Sakura scoffed at Kiba's tone. "You act like he ever told me about them. I always thought Naruto-baka was an only child."

Ino smirked as she realized that she knew something about Naruto that Sakura didn't. "I've known about it for over a month now. The one named Cairo came into my store to purchase a bouquet of Fire Lilies from my family's store so that he could make some kind of special medicine for a sick friend of his. I don't know too much about Menma."

Chōji put his chips down long enough to say, "Still, how do you suppose Naruto managed to keep a secret like that under wraps? You'd think that he'd be the first person to spill his guts over the situation."

Sakura sneered at Chōji before looking over to where Cairo and Menma had appeared in the stands. "It doesn't matter how many brothers Naruto-baka has. They're probably not even a match for Sasuke-kun."

Ino simply shook her head at the shallow depths of her friend's heart. "If you ask me, Cairo-san seemed to be pretty strong to me. Plus, you can't just gauge him from a first look alone."

Sakura turned to Ino with a defiant look in her eye. "Let's be serious for a moment, Ino-pig. If Naruto-baka's brothers are even the slightest bit like him, then they're both probably not even that strong."

Almost instantly, Sakura felt the cold steel of a kunai pressed against her throat. Menma pulled the knife back before triumphantly smirking. "Be careful what you say, baka. Cairo-nii and I don't like it when people insult Naruto-nii. Just be lucky that I got to you first and not Cairo."

Everyone turned around to see Cairo holding a powerful paper bomb. The blonde quickly stowed the explosive and flipped over them and into an empty seat. "So, I can assume that you are Sakura Haruno. Naruto-nii was right about you being pathetic."

He then turned to Chōji and smiled. "I know you managed to get a sneak peek at Naruto's training. Why don't you tell forehead girl over here what you saw?"

Chōji nodded and sat his chip bag down. "I was leaving the hospital when I heard what sounded like a fight. When I got to the area, Naruto was hacking away at a training dummy with a pair of bladed tessen. His sensei was standing next to him while showing him where to adjust his moves. She moved like she was born to fight with those things."

Ino's curiosity had been piqued even further at the mention of a sensei. "Chōji, do you remember what she looked like?"

Much to everyone's surprise, Kiba was the one to open his mouth next. "I'm gonna guess that she wears what looks like a one-piece blue swimsuit with a matching blue mask and has seriously long black hair that she keeps in a ponytail with about five or six binds in it. She also carries those tessen, which are also blue, on her hips."

Chōji was stunned at the perfect description of the woman he saw with Naruto. "Kiba, that was _**too**_ good of a description for a simple guess. How could you possibly know all of that?"

Kiba smirked as a female voice said, "I've been sitting next to Ino-san this entire time."

Everyone save for Kiba and the Uzumaki duo nearly launched from their seats. The woman chuckled before fanning herself with one of her bladed fans. "Would you all mind keeping it down? My student is about to begin his match and I'd like to watch his rather inevitable victory in peace."

* * *

Kage booth…

Orochimaru in his Kazekage disguise sauntered into the booth and sat next to Hiruzen with his guards flanking his sides. "I apologize for being late, Hokage-dono. The deserts can be harsh for even my Suna shinobi."

Hiruzen simply nodded and said, "You made it in time for an interesting fight, Kazekage-dono. I'm sure you won't be disappointed with this match."

The Sandaime then leaned over to his guard and whispered, "Prepare our forces for battle and wait for the signal. Orochimaru has shown himself to us."

He then turned back to the fake Kazekage in time to hear, "Still, I'm looking forward to watching my son face the Uchiha child."

Sarutobi smiled as he watched his guard leave to deliver his message. "Sasuke's match should prove to be exciting if he shows. However, Naruto-kun is not one to simply cast off as average. He's someone that you don't want to underestimate."

* * *

Arena…

Neji sneered at Naruto before saying, "Look at you. A failure trying to defend and redeem another failure is still just that when the day ends. Fate has decreed that you shall lose this match, Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto yawned before pulling out a small scroll. "What are you, Fate's whipping boy? I don't know about you, but I control my own destiny. Right now, I'm going to show you that your belief in Fate is a load of bullshit by beating your ass for what you did to Hinata-chan."

Neji smirked before activating his Byakugan. "It looks as though I will have to teach you that Fate cannot be denied."

As soon as Neji tried to strike Naruto, the blonde gracefully grabbed his wrist before spinning past him. Only a second later, Neji felt a sharp pain across his back. Using his Byakugan, he saw that Naruto was now wielding a pair of ornate tessen that were two feet in length. The fans were red with a white Uzumaki swirl in the center and a thin silver edge that was coated with a small amount of blood. "The silver edge must be a blade," Neji calculated.

Naruto nodded before pointing a closed tessen at Neji. "That is the accurate assumption, Neji. Unlike my sensei, my tessen have a bladed edge to deceive my opponents. Also, these tessen were hand-crafted by their last wielder to be able to channel chakra."

Neji scoffed at Naruto's announcement. "It doesn't matter if you have a new weapon, Uzumaki-san. Fate has deemed that you will lose this match and that is all there is to it. You cannot defy your fate no matter how much you try!"

Naruto rolled his eyes in boredom. "Spare me your sob story, Neji. I already know about your reasons for hating Hinata-chan and they're seriously fucked up. By the way, for someone who seems to believe that you can't escape fate, you were seriously trying to escape _**your**_ fate when you almost killed Hinata-chan! In short, you're nothing more than a fucking hypocrite!"

That was when Neji made the mistake that would cost him the match. In his rage, Neji rushed at Naruto with the intent to kill him. "How dare you insult me? You know nothing about what you speak of! I will not be humiliated by a failure like you!"

As Neji entered into Naruto's personal space, the blonde smirked. "_Neji_," he thought to himself, "_you've just made the biggest mistake of your life._"

Neji moved into position and said, "You are within therange of my divination. **Hakke: Rokujū Yon shō!** **Ni shō…Yon shō…Hachi shō…Jūroku shō…Sanjū Ni shō…Rokujū Yon shō!**"

* * *

Stands…

Everyone save for Shikamaru, the twins, and the woman in blue gasped at Neji's display. Ino looked on in shock while saying, "I can't believe it. Naruto actually lost the fight."

Sakura scoffed while watching her teammate hit the ground. "I told you that Naruto-baka couldn't win this fight. Only Sasuke-kun could win against a genius like Neji."

Naruto's sensei chuckled before pointing to the ring. "This fight's not over just yet. Naruto-kun hasn't even begun to fight seriously."

* * *

Arena floor…

Just as Neji turned away from Naruto, he felt another sharp pain across his back. Turning around again, Neji saw that Naruto was back on his feet without so much as a single bruise. "That's not possible. You shouldn't be able to stand."

Naruto smirked before pushing chakra into his tessen. "You're a fool if you thought I came unprepared. When I first arrived to the stadium, I hid in the trees while allowing a kage bunshin to fight you. Just before it went down, I swapped places with it to let you believe that you had won. Now, prepare to feel the wrath of the Uzumaki-Ryu Tessenjutsu."

Neji was unprepared when Naruto swung his tessen and shouted, "**Ninpō: Kirikiri no mai!**"

The Hyūga was instantly assaulted by multiple blades of wind that sought to tear him apart. After taking three hits, Neji started spinning before shouting, "**Hakke shō: Kaiten!**"

As Neji was encased in a dome of chakra, Naruto let out a small smirk. "You just sealed the match, Neji. **Ninpō: Teikiatsu no mai!**"

Unlike Naruto's **Kirikiri no mai**, the **Teikiatsu no mai** was designed to maneuver his wind blades in a cyclone and quickly shred and shave at its target. Neji stood no chance as his defense was breached and he was left on the ground with numerous cuts along his arms and legs.

Naruto looked down at Neji before saying, "You told me that Fate had declared that I would lose this match. That only gave me more of a reason to win. I choose my own fate, Neji. It's not too late for you to choose yours."

Neji watched Naruto in silence for a few seconds before turning his gaze to Genma. "I have been bested and can no longer continue."

Genma nodded and raised a hand to the air. "Winner of the first match: Uzumaki Naruto!"

There was a stagnant pause in the air before the crowd broke out into thunderous applause. Naruto allowed a smile to ghost over his face before vanishing in a yellow flash. Had anyone been looking close enough, they would've later described the image as Naruto literally just ceasing to exist.

* * *

In the stands…

The woman in blue smirked as Genma declared Naruto the winner. "It seems as though my student has won the first match. I expected nothing less from him."

Ino turned to the woman and smiled. "I have to admit that I'm glad he won. By the way, we never got your name."

The woman closed her fan before saying, "It's only fair to tell you, seeing as how I know all of your names. My name is Kitana and I am the one who taught Naruto the art of Tessenjutsu."

Behind the group, Naruto appeared in another flash and smiled. "There was never any doubt that I'd win. I made a promise on my nindō and I _**never**_ break my nindō."

Sakura let out a disbelieving grunt. "You got lucky, Naruto-baka. I bet Sasuke-kun could've beaten him way easier than you."

Naruto rolled his eyes before smacking Sakura over the head with a closed tessen. "You don't have any room to talk, Sakura. As I recall, Ino would've won in the prelims had I not saved your sorry ass. You might think you have some talent as a kunoichi, but the only things you have going for you are your book smarts and your chakra control. In a real fight, you'd probably be the first to die."

He then turned to Cairo and Menma and embraced them with open arms. "It's good to have you two back in the village. How has the search been going?"

Cairo smiled as he pulled out a small list. "We've almost gotten everything we need. It was thanks to Ino-chan that I managed to get a very crucial piece of the puzzle."

Menma nodded while toying with a kunai. "The time is drawing closer and I'm getting antsy. We need to find the last item and fast."

Naruto nodded and pointed to the arena. "We'll worry about that after the exams. For now, let's enjoy the festivities."

* * *

Arena floor…

Genma looked down at his watch before saying, "The second match will now commence. Will Sabaku no Gaara and Uchiha Sasuke report to the field?"

Gaara used his **shunshin no jutsu** to appear on the arena floor. This would be a battle to truly prove his existence. However, the key factor in this fight was that Sasuke still hadn't shown.

Genma was about to call the match when a Jonin appeared with a message. After listening to the messenger, Genma raised his hand and pointed to Gaara. "Hokage-sama has decided to disqualify Sasuke for not being on time for his match. We will now move on the the next fight."

* * *

Kage booth…

Orochimaru, while still garbed in his disguise, turned to Sarutobi in confusion. "Hokage-dono, why did you disqualify the Uchiha? The crowd won't be too pleased about that."

Sarutobi shook his head and pointed to the crowd. "That does not excuse him from being late. Even if he shows up, he will not be allowed to fight."

While Orochimaru was giving a curt nod, he was also silently cursing the Sandaime Hokage into an early grave. "_That just threw all of my plans out the window. Sarutobi, whether or not the invasion goes through, I'll see you dead before sunset._"

* * *

Arena floor…

Genma waited for Gaara to vacate the arena before saying, "The next match will be Sabaku no Kankuro vs. Aburame Shino. Will both contestants come down to the field?"

* * *

Stands…

Kankuro slightly grimaced at the announcement. "_I don't want to waste my adjustments on Karasu before the invasion begins,_" he thought. "_There's also the fact that I might end up facing Gaara if I win and Kami-hime knows I don't want that._"

Seeing no other option, Kankuro quickly shouted, "I give up."

* * *

Arena floor…

Genma was seconds away from choking someone. "_First Sasuke doesn't show up and now this moron turns out to be a total pussy. This Chūnin exam sucks worse than a two dollar whore without a gag reflex!_"

Instead of voicing that rather…colorful thought, Genma simply said, "Winner by forfeit: Shino Aburame. The next match will be Sabaku no Temari vs.…"

Genma was cut off from his announcement when Sasuke and Kakashi appeared in a swirl of leaves. Kakashi turned to Genma and asked, "Did we make it in time?"

Genma shook his head and pulled out a pocket watch. "Sasuke was disqualified for being late. I need you both to vacate the field so that the next match can start."

Sasuke held a blank look on his face for all of three seconds before kicking Kakashi in the balls. "I told you this would happen if we took a detour but you just _**had**_ to avoid the damn cat. The next time that hocus excuse of yours holds merit, you're gonna keep going in the same direction even if a _**house**_ falls on you!"

Kakashi, who had the foresight to wear a protective cup, quickly recovered from the kick and pulled out his book. "Quit your bitchin, Sasuke. There are always the field promotions and the chance to try again in six months."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and looked up to see Naruto looking down at him. "You had better not lose dobe. Believe it or not, I've got a lot of money riding on you."

Genma smirked as the duo of student and sensei left the arena. He then watched as Temari used her fan to glide down to the arena floor. After waiting for all of three seconds for Shikamaru to come down, Genma looked up into the audience and shouted, "Shikamaru Nara, get your lazy ass down here and fight! The schedule I made has already been fucked up enough without you trying to puss out like Kankuro! I swear to Kami-hime that if you don't come down here, I will have someone toss your ass over the railing!"

* * *

Stands…

Shikamaru groaned as he realized that his opponent was a female. "This is so troublesome. I think I'll just quit now and save myself the trouble of fighting."

Before the Nara heir could raise his hand, Naruto gave him a swift boot to the ass and kicked him over the rail. "Stop being a pansy and fight! I, much like Genma-san, refuse to see another puss out during these exams and I swear on the ramen that if you try to forfeit, I _**will**_ be informing your mother!"

* * *

Arena floor…

Shikamaru sighed as he realized that he wasn't getting out of his current situation. After all, nobody with a functioning brain is dumb enough to fuck with Naruto Uzumaki when he swears on the ramen. "I guess I don't really have much of a choice but to fight. This is so…"

"Finish that sentence and you'll be doing sunrise warm-ups with Gai-sensei and Bushy Brows," Naruto yelled from the stands.

That comment had both the desired reaction of shutting Shikamaru up as well as making almost every single Konoha shinobi and kunoichi shiver in fear. The only ones not shivering were Lee and Gai who actually looked forward to the prospect of having another workout partner and Cairo and Menma who were too busy gagging from Naruto's threat.

* * *

(Fight proceeds as canon.)

Genma shook his head in shame. "At this point, I'm just glad you did _**something**_ before throwing' in the towel. Winner by forfeit: Tem…"

"I forfeit too," said a flustered Temari. "If I'm going to win, it will be done honorably in a full battle and not this farce."

Genma did a facepalm before saying, "I don't even give two fucks at this point. There is no winner of this match. Since there are only three fighters left, the last match will be a free for all."

Out of nowhere, Shino raised his hand. "Proctor, I fear that I must also withdraw from the exams."

If looks could kill, the look that Genma was giving Shino would've had the Aburame heir burning in a shallow grave. "Shino, since I know that you would only do this for a good reason, I will allow you to explain yourself. However, you'd better have a damn good reason because so far it's been one fuck-up after another and I'm about ready to use this senbon for something _**other**_ than casual chewing!"

The Aburame heir nodded before saying, "The reason I have decided to quit is simply because I am outclassed. Gaara-san has a sand defense that would destroy my beetles before they could touch him and Naruto has shown to be skilled in wind techniques that can cut them down. No matter how I do the math, I would still be the first to lose as it would be nearly impossible for me to even touch my opponents."

Genma sighed as he accepted the logic in Shino's words. "Due to Shino being the only person to actually have a fucking valid reason to quit, the final match shall be Naruto Uzumaki vs. Sabaku no Gaara. Will both contestants take the field?"

Gaara appeared in his usual shunshin and Naruto materialized in front of him in a yellow flash. The blonde pulled both tessen from their hiding place and opened them halfway. "Gaara, are you ready to face the power of my Tessenjutsu?"

Gaara allowed his sand to flow from his gourd before giving off a menacing smile. "Uzumaki, you are a strong fighter. Your death will surely prove that I exist."

Naruto bowed his head in sadness before giving off a glare that could kill a lesser man. "Gaara, you're a fool to believe that killing me will prove your existence. With every person that you've killed, people come to fear and acknowledge your existence. However, the moment you die, it will be that much easier to completely forget that you ever existed. Live a life worth remembering and people will acknowledge you even in death."

"You are the fool," Gaara said, "and I shall prove that by feeding your blood to mother. Your attachments to others will only make you weaker and that much easier to kill."

Naruto sighed before turning to Genma. "Start the match and get out of the way. I might have to level this field to get my point across and you _**don't**_ want to become a casualty."

Genma nodded and raised his hand. "Let the final match between Uzumaki Naruto and Sabaku no Gaara begin!"

As soon as Genma moved out of the way, Naruto was forced to dodge a river of sand. He then threw a few kunai at Gaara which were immediately stopped by his sand defense. Naruto opened his left tessen full-mast and shouted, "Your sand won't protect you from this attack. **Suiton: Uzumaki kyūryū no Mai!**"

As Naruto waved his tessen, a vortex of water appeared and rushed at Gaara. Fortunately for the Suna genin, his sand did its job and sprang up to protect him. Naruto simply smiled at this and used the same technique again.

* * *

Stands…

Sasuke turned to Kakashi in confusion. "Kakashi-sensei, why is Naruto using that same attack over and over? It doesn't look like it's doing much of anything."

Kakashi smiled under his mask and pointed to Gaara's now struggling sand. "Naruto knows that he can't touch Gaara with his sand defense protecting him. He's clearly forcing Gaara's sand to become drenched in water so that he can get around it. Still, I wonder where that jutsu came from."

From behind him and Sasuke, Ino tapped Kakashi on the shoulder. "Didn't you hear him earlier, Kakashi-sensei? He said it was the Uzumaki-style Tessenjutsu. I didn't even know that Naruto had a clan."

With Ino's words in his head, everything suddenly clicked in Kakashi's mind. "Ino, the Uzumaki Clan were masters of Kenjutsu and Fuinjutsu above all else. However, there was a woman in the clan who took their Kenjutsu style and converted it into a Tessenjutsu style. Her name was Uzumaki Kagura and she was the only Uzumaki to have truly mastered Tessenjutsu."

"This Kagura person," Sasuke started, "was she closely related to Naruto? I mean, it would explain his fighting style."

Out of nowhere, Sakura gave a disbelieving snort. "Who cares about some clan that nobody's ever heard about? I bet they're all as talentless as Naruto-baka. Heck, they're probably in hiding somewhere so they don't have to deal with him."

Kitana chose that moment to smack Sakura over the head with a closed tessen. "Do _**not**_ insult the Uzumaki Clan in my presence! It took the combined might of Iwa, Kumo, Kiri, and Kusa to bring them down and they still destroyed the majority of the joint army before falling. My mother and I fought alongside their clan until the bitter end and we watched as every shinobi and kunoichi of every rank fought to their dying breaths. I will not stand by while some pathetic excuse of a kunoichi insults one of the greatest clans to ever exist."

Sakura scoffed again. "If they were so great, they wouldn't have been killed so easily. Better yet, they wouldn't have a loser like Naruto-baka carrying their last name."

"Sakura shut your mouth! You have no right to insult Naruto and his family so just shut up! I'm getting sick and tired of listening to you talk about him like you know him! You don't know anything about Naruto so just be quiet!"

Everyone's jaws hit the floor as the words left Sasuke's mouth. No one had expected that he would ever raise his voice in defense of Naruto in such a manner. When Kakashi asked why, Sasuke merely huffed to recompose himself. "Everyone calls the Uchiha Clan the greatest, yet they were all killed by a single man. It took the combined might of three major villages and a minor village to kill Naruto's family and they still decimated the majority of the opposition. That alone speaks volumes of their strength."

There was an awkward silence in the air until Ino said, "By the way, what was that weird jutsu Naruto used to flash into the arena?"

Kakashi chuckled at Ino's confused look. "That jutsu was Naruto's paternal kekkei genkai. I was completely surprised when I found out that he activated it earlier than his father did."

"Hold on," Sasuke interjected, "I never knew Naruto had a kekkei genkai. Better yet, who are his parents? I don't think I've ever heard him talk about them."

"That's because our lineage is not one to openly speak about," growled Menma. "If Naruto were to talk about our parents openly, it would only serve to paint an even larger target on his back. Also, it would be better for everyone if you don't start asking questions that could get people killed."

"Menma," Cairo snapped, "you've already said too much. By giving out that little quip, you've inadvertently opened the floodgates to a lot of unneeded questions and comments."

Cairo then turned his gaze on the Konoha rookies. "Still, my brother is absolutely right. Asking the wrong questions will indeed get you and others into a mess of trouble. If something happens to Naruto-nii because someone's been getting nosy, there'll be hell to pay for whoever opens their mouths."

As Cairo's threat lingered in the air, Lee suddenly pointed down to the stadium in clear excitement. "Everyone, Naruto-kun had stopped Gaara's sand! I think he's going on the offensive!"

* * *

Arena floor…

Naruto had not only succeeded in slowing down Gaara's sand, he had also managed to fill a good two feet of the entire arena with water. "That sand of yours can sure take some punishment," Naruto said. "However, you're playing on my field now. **Suiton: Suiryūdan no jutsu!**"

With a swing of his tessen, two dragons made of water rose up in front of Naruto and hurled themselves at Gaara. The redhead's shield barely protected him from the first dragon but the second one slammed into him and propelled him into the air.

The blonde swung his fans in a clapping motion and shouted, "**Ninpō: Tatsumaki no Mai,**" causing a large tornado to form and tear at Gaara's **Suna no Yoroi**. The tornado also had the added effect of hurling Gaara higher into the sky.

As the redhead fell to the ground, Naruto prepared his fans for another attack. "Don't think this is over yet. This is the first form of the Uzumaki-Ryu Tessenjutsu. **Uzumaki-Ryu: Mugen no Mai: Ton seinō.**"

Much like the name suggested, Naruto jumped into the air and began flying up until he was about fifteen feet off the ground. He then spun in a full circle and waved his fans in a rising motion. "**Fūton: Suzume no Mai!**"

Everyone watched as a flock of sparrows made of wind crashed into Gaara and began peeling off more of his sand armor. Naruto then crossed his arms before swinging then in an 'x' formation. "**Fūton: Hiiro-fū no Mai!**"

On the downswing of Naruto's arms, a torrent of scarlet wind blades ripped off even more of Gaara's armor. As the Suna genin began to fall again, Naruto closed both fans and stuck them together. He then opened the closed tessen to reveal a single fan that was four feet long.

While channeling chakra for his next attack, Naruto's eyes turned an amethyst color as his hair turned red and his tessen began to glow until it was completely wrapped in a white light. He then raised the tessen over his head and shouted, "**Uzumaki-Ryu: Ryū no Mai!**"

The moment Naruto swung the fan down, a large white spectral dragon crashed into Gaara and slammed him into the ground with a deafening roar. The blonde then flew back down to the ground as his features returned to normal. When he touched down, he got a good look at Gaara who was now clutching a wounded shoulder showing that it took the brunt of the fall.

"Uzumaki," Gaara rasped, "you have given me an injury. You have made me bleed _**my**_ own blood. You are the opponent who shall truly prove my existence!"

As Naruto began planning his next move, two things happened that set everything into overdrive. First, Gaara's gourd had completely encased him in sand and transformed him into a mini Shukaku. The second thing to happen was the appearance of white feathers falling from the sky.

Naruto quickly dispelled what he knew to be a Genjutsu, but he was knocked from his current moment of focus when an explosion went off in the Kage booth. He then watched as Oto and Suna shinobi began swarming the stands and attacking any moving Konoha shinobi. "Kami-hime," Naruto said with a grim look on his face, "it's finally begun."

* * *

**~Chapter End~**

* * *

**Jutsus**/Translation list~

(Note: Most if not all translations will consist of terms and jutsu not seen in canon. The majority of the list will be techniques of my design or rare kekkei genkai techniques.)

**Ninpō: Kirikiri no mai/**Ninja art: Dance of Blades- This jutsu creates small crescent-shaped chakra blades to launch at an opponent and can be adapted to use as an elemental attack.

**Ninpō: Teikiatsu no mai/**Ninja art: Dance of the Cyclone- This is a modified version of the **Kirikiri no Mai**. Like the name suggests, the chakra blades surround the target in a cyclical movement. Naruto uses this to match the direction of Neji's **Kaiten** and allows the blades to slip through his defenses. Much like its predecessor, it can be used as an elemental attack.

**Suiton: Uzumaki kyūryū no Mai/**Water style: Dance of the Whirlpool torrent- A small whirlpool of water forms at the end of Naruto's tessen and blasts out a large torrent of water at the target.

**Suiton: Suiryūdan no jutsu/**Water style: Water dragon jutsu- Go watch the Kakashi vs. Zabuza fight for this one. I'm sure you've all seen it. Naruto uses the tessen as a medium to control the direction of the attack.

**Ninpō: Tatsumaki no Mai/**Ninja art: Dance of the Tornado- summons a tornado of chakra that cuts away at anything caught in it.

**Suna no Yoroi/**Sand Armor- encases the user in a thin but very strong layer of sand to protect them from damage. It was first seen in the Lee vs. Gaara fight.

**Uzumaki-Ryu: Mugen no Mai: Ton seinō/**Whirlpool style: Dance of Infinity: Flying performance- a three-fold attack sequence where the caster attacks with the strongest moves of the beginning stance to keep their opponent in the air as long as possible and wear down on their defenses. During this attack, Naruto takes to the sky to keep an offensive advantage as well as to ensure that his target does not recover too early.

**Uzumaki-Ryu: Mugen no Mai/** Whirlpool style: Dance of Infinity- the name of the Uzumaki-Ryu Tessenjutsu. The only other user of this style is Kagura Uzumaki.

**Fūton: Suzume no Mai/**Wind Style: Dance of the Sparrow- creates multiple sparrows made of wind to attack the target.

**Fūton: Hiiro-fū no Mai/**Wind style: Dance of the Scarlet Wind- casts blades of wind that take on a scarlet color.

**Uzumaki-Ryu: Ryū no Mai/**Whirlpool style: Dance of the Dragon- summons an ethereal dragon made of pure chakra that slams into an opponent and sends them crashing to the ground. For Naruto, this jutsu forces his Uzumaki blood to the surface and causes his features to change so that they reflect his maternal heritage.


End file.
